Seven Principles of Sound Public Policy

On February 11th, Larry Reed addressed the Bastiat Society in Charleston, SC. He outlined seven principles of sound public policy. They are:

1. Free people are not equal, and equal people are not free.

2. What is yours, you tend to take care of; what everyone owns, everyone tends to ignore.

3. Sound economics requires looking at the long run, and considering the effects on more than just a few.

4. If you encourage something you get more of it; if you discourage something, you get less of it.

5. Nobody spends somebody else's money as carefully as he spends his own.

6. A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take away everything you have.

7. Liberty makes all the difference in the world.

Larry also shared the inspiring story of Sir Nicholas Winton, who personally saved the lives of 669 children, most of them Jewish, in the face of Nazi aggression in Eastern Europe.

You can read more about Sir Nicholas and the Emmy award winning documentary of his life, The Power of Good, by clicking here.

Larry Reed is President of the Foundation for Economic Education in Irvington, NY.